Five oil tankers a month currently travel through Vancouver waters, and are barely noticeable. But that number will increase dramatically if Kinder Morgan’s proposal is accepted by the National Energy Board.

“There could be up to three tankers here at a time; we would have the berth space capacity for that — it wouldn’t be a common event but we would have the capacity for that.”

October marks the 60th anniversary of the Trans Mountain pipeline. It plays an integral role in the Lower Mainland’s energy security.

Burnaby has grown around Westridge terminal. It was 1953 when Alberta crude first made its way to B.C., starting in Edmonton and snaking through the Rockies.

One-third of the oil that flows through the line today fuels B.C. vehicles. The remainder of the oil is sold to Washington and California.

“All three of them are under strain to get the capacity we need for the Lower Mainland gasoline and diesel market — we service 80 to 90 per cent of that through our pipeline,” says Ian Anderson, CEO of Kinder Morgan.

Any oil spill would mean going after internationally-registered shipping firms.

“We are responsible for the safe loading, and we are responsible for the response at the terminal,” says Davies.

“Once the ship leaves, our strict regulatory obligations end, but we are very concerned that that part of the business is done well.”

Authorities say shipping nowadays is much safer.

Tankers are double-hulled; they receive tug support through Vancouver waters; and two local pilots help vessels navigate through our waters all the way to southern Vancouver Island.

That’s still not enough, says Vancouver’s mayor.

“We put all that at risk, to ship oil through our port?” says Mayor Gregor Robertson. “That’s folly, we are putting enormous risk on the environment, on our brand, and the jobs we have here on the ground and have had for generations here in Vancouver.”